Revelation

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Craig R. Koester
Keyword(s):  
Dead Sea Scrolls ◽  
Dead Sea ◽  
Cultural Impact ◽  
Book Of Revelation ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
History Of Interpretation ◽  
Religious Text ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
History Of

In this landmark commentary, Craig R. Koester offers a comprehensive look at a powerful and controversial early Christian text, the book of Revelation. Originally written for Christian communities in Asia Minor, Revelation depicts scenes of cosmic conflict in which God, the creator of the world, overcomes the forces of destruction and makes all things new. This often misunderstood portion of the New Testament repeatedly surprises readers by warning that judgment is imminent, only to interrupt the visions of terror with messages of hope and redemption. Koester provides richly textured descriptions of the book’s setting and language, making extensive use of Greek and Latin inscriptions, classical texts, and ancient Jewish writings, including the Dead Sea Scrolls. While Revelation has often been viewed as world-negating, this commentary focuses on its deep engagement with social, religious, and economic issues. It also addresses the book’s volatile history of interpretation and its cultural impact over the centuries. The result is a groundbreaking study that provides powerful insights and sets new directions for the continued appreciation of this visionary religious text.

The Development of the “Apostolic Tradition” in Early Christian Worship

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maxwell E. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Early History ◽  
Christian Initiation ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Liturgical Year ◽  
Language Groups ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
The Hours ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Worship

Contrary to the assumptions often held by previous scholars, contemporary liturgical scholarship is coming increasingly to realize and emphasize that Christian worship was diverse even in its biblical and apostolic origins, multi- rather than monolinear in its development, and closely related to the several cultural, linguistic, geographical, and theological expressions and orientations of distinct churches throughout the early centuries of Christianity. Apart from some rather broad (but significant) commonalities discerned throughout various churches in antiquity, the traditions of worship during the first three centuries of the common era were rather diverse in content and interpretation, depending upon where individual practices are to be located. Indeed, already in this era, together with the diversity of Christologies, ecclesiologies, and, undoubtedly, liturgical practices encountered in the New Testament itself, the early history of the “tradition” of Christian worship is, simultaneously, the early history of the developing liturgical traditions of several differing Christian communities and language groups: Armenian, Syrian, Greek, Coptic, and Latin, We should not, then, expect to find only one so-called “apostolic” liturgical tradition, practice or theology surviving in this period before the Council of Nicea (325 ce) but, rather, great diversity both within the rites themselves as well as in their theological interpretations. This essay highlights the principal occasions for Christian worship in the first three centuries for which the textual and liturgical evidence is most abundant: Christian initiation, the eucharistic liturgy with its central anaphoral prayer, daily prayer (the liturgy of the hours), and the feasts and seasons of the liturgical year.

scholarly journals The New Testament teaching on family matters

2006 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolyn Osiek
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
First Century ◽  
History Of Christianity ◽  
Women Slaves ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Patriarchal Family ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Family

The article shows that first-century urban Christian communities, such as those founded by Paul, brought in both whole families and individual women, slaves, and others. An example of an early Christian family can be seen in the autobiographical details of the Shepherd of Hermas, whether factual or not. The article aims to demonstrate that the New Testament teaching on family gives two very different pictures: the structured harmony of the patriarchal family as presented in the household codes of Colossians 3 and Ephesians 5, over against the warnings and challenges of Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels to leave family in favor of discipleship. The developing devotion to martyrdom strengthened the appeal to denial. Another version of the essay was published in Horsley, Richard A (ed), A people’s history of Christianity, Volume 1: Christian origins, 201-220. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress.1.

scholarly journals Jubilee in the Bible

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-6
Author(s):  
James A. Sanders
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Near East ◽  
Dead Sea Scrolls ◽  
Dead Sea ◽  
Ancient Near East ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Dead

The concept of the Jubilee, or the collective forgiveness of all debts and debtor/slaves, had its origins in the Ancient Near East where it was a secular practice of kings. It came into the Bible originally also as a secular practice of kings but then became the province of priests and a calendar observance to be celebrated every 50 years. It was finally understood in the Dead Sea Scrolls and the New Testament to rest in the hands of God alone, an eschatological concept of the forgiveness of all debts/sins and the redemption of all human sins, or debts to God, that became the very basis of the theological history of Luke/Acts.

scholarly journals Die uitbouing van die Bybelse kanon in antieke Judaïsme en die vroeë Christendom

2015 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörg Frey
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Early Christianity ◽  
Dead Sea Scrolls ◽  
Dead Sea ◽  
Ancient Judaism ◽  
Canonical Process ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Dead

The development of the biblical canon in ancient Judaism and early Christianity. A brief account of the process of the development of both the Jewish and the bipartite Christian canon is given. It is argued that due to insights gained from recent textual discoveries, especially the Dead Sea Scrolls (Qumran texts), earlier theories about the history of canonisation had to be reviewed. With the New Testament canon the authors focus on the influence of Marcion as well as the various other factors that played a role in the process of canonisation. It is shown that canonisation was the result of a complicated and variegated canonical process. But in spite of the problems of the criteria used and other factors involved, the biblical canon is theologically valuable and ‘well-chosen’.

scholarly journals Psalm 118 (117 lxx) in Luke-Acts: Application of a 'New Exodus Motif'

2009 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyuk J. Kwon
Keyword(s):  
Dead Sea Scrolls ◽  
Dead Sea ◽  
Church Fathers ◽  
New Exodus ◽  
1 Peter ◽  
2 Corinthians ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
History Of ◽  
Exodus Motif ◽  
Psalm 118

This contribution explores the presence of Psalm 118 (117 LXX) in Luke-Acts. The Wirkungsgeschichte of Psalm 118 will be traced by means of a twofold approach: from a traditional-historical and a hermeneutical angle with regard to the reception history of Psalm 118. Firstly, in terms of a traditional-historical, otherwise known as a diachronic, approach, the background of Psalm 118 and evidence of the use and application of Psalm 118 in the tradition (namely in the ancient Jewish materials, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Targums, and Rabbinics, and the New Testament books of Mark, Matthew, Luke, Acts, John, Romans, 2 Corinthians, Ephesians, 1 Peter, Hebrews, Revelation, as well as in terms of Church Fathers 1 Clement and Barnabas and the Apocryphon Thomas) will be discussed. Secondly, on the hermeneutical level, otherwise known as the synchronic approach, the function and interpretation of the quotations of Psalm 118 in its new context of Luke-Acts will be examined. In terms of the latter approach, attention will be paid to investigating a possible underlying �New Exodus Motif�.

A New Theory on Aṣḥāb al-kahf (“The Sleepers of the Cave”) Based on Evidence from the Dead Sea Scrolls (dss)

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-47
Author(s):  
Rashid Iqbal
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Dead Sea Scrolls ◽  
Second Temple ◽  
Dead Sea ◽  
Research Field ◽  
Second Temple Judaism ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Innovative Method ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Dead

The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls (dss) in 1947 substantially transformed ideas surrounding Second Temple Judaism and early Christianity. Up to now, Islamic scholars have paid little attention to dss, primarily because of the perception that dss are an exclusively Judeo-Christian matter. However, a common research field has grown out of dss, one that compels an Islamic response that will answer certain unaddressed queries. Therefore, in this hermeneutic synopsis, nature, history and an exposition of Aṣḥāb al-kahf are expounded in the light of references from dss, Second Temple Judaism, early Christian history, the history of the Roman Empire and astounding connections found in the Qurʾān. This delineated and innovative method may be called the “Five-Pronged Juxtaposing” approach, and it is entirely different from existing perspectives.1

The Book of Isaiah

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Blake Couey
Keyword(s):  
Dead Sea Scrolls ◽  
Dead Sea ◽  
Divine Sovereignty ◽  
Hebrew Poetry ◽  
Book Of Isaiah ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
History Of ◽  
And Gender ◽  
History Of Composition ◽  
The Impact

The book of Isaiah is a compilation of prophetic poetry and narratives, named for an 8th-century bce Judahite prophet. As depicted in chapters 1–39, Isaiah declared that Yhwh intended to punish Judah for social and cultic infractions; at the same time, he expressed support for the Davidic monarchy and proclaimed that Jerusalem would not be conquered by the Assyrians. Chapters 40–55 are addressed to a later audience following the conquest of Jerusalem by Babylon in 587 bce. These texts offer reassurance that Jerusalem will be restored and its exiled citizens will return. The final chapters, 56–66, reflect growing disillusionment and conflict in Judah under Persian rule, and the book ends by describing Yhwh’s eschatological destruction of the wicked and vindication of a righteous remnant. The book grew and developed over a period of four to five centuries. Despite its sometimes conflicting perspectives, it is broadly unified by its focus on the fate of Jerusalem, and later editors worked to impose some coherence upon its varied content, as seen by the repeated thematic echoes in Isaiah 1 and 65–66. Isaiah is a sophisticated work of biblical Hebrew poetry, characterized by intricate combinations of imagery and wordplay. It features a high view of divine sovereignty, emphasizing Yhwh’s control over world nations and superiority over all human and divine powers; these ideas contributed to the emergence of monotheism in ancient Judah. The book also articulates diverse responses to imperial domination, even as it chronicles the ebb and flow of Judah’s own imperial aspirations. Striking portrayals of women and gender appear throughout Isaiah, including the extensive personification of Jerusalem as a woman and the comparison of Yhwh to a mother. Isaiah is also notable for its discourse about disability, which serves a variety of rhetorical functions in the book. The impact of Isaiah was felt immediately, as evidenced by the number of copies of the book among the Dead Sea scrolls and citations of it in the New Testament. It greatly impacted the development of important religious ideas, including apocalypticism and belief in resurrection. In Christianity, Isaiah played an important role in reflection upon the nature of Jesus and the inclusion of Gentiles, even as it informed Christian anti-Judaism. The book has had a more complicated reception in Judaism, where it significantly influenced the growth of Zionism. Scholarly study of Isaiah continues to clarify the shape of its final form and history of composition. Current research on the book is increasingly interdisciplinary, engaging metaphor theory, disability studies, and postcolonial thought. The history of the book’s interpretation and reception is another area of growing interest.

scholarly journals The identity and witness of Arab pre-Islamic Arab Christianity: The Arabic language and the Bible

2014 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
David D. Grafton
Keyword(s):  
Primary Standard ◽  
Arabic Language ◽  
Christian Faith ◽  
Historical Legacy ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Religious Text ◽  
Counter Example ◽  
History Of

This article argues that Arab Christianity has had a unique place in the history of World Christianity. Rooted in a biblical witness, the origins and history of Arab Christianity have been largely forgotten or ignored. This is not primarily as a result of the fact that the Arab Christian historical legacy has been overcome by Islam. Rather, unlike other early Christian communities, the Bible was never translated into the vernacular of the Arabs. By the 7th century the language of the Qur’an became the primary standard of the Arabic language, which then became the written religious text of the Arabs. This article will explore the identity and witness of the Christian presence in Arabia and claims that the development of an Arabic Bible provides a unique counter-example to what most missiologists have assumed as the basis for the spread of the Christian faith as a result of the translation of the Christian scriptures into a vernacular.

New Perspectives on the Significance of the Scrolls for the New Testament and Early Christian Literature

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 267-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
George J. Brooke
Keyword(s):  
Dead Sea Scrolls ◽  
Dead Sea ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Jesus Movement ◽  
Research Context ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Christian Literature ◽  
Similarities And Differences ◽  
Ways Of Thinking

This article places the contributions of the thematic volume in the larger research context where the Dead Sea Scrolls and early Christian source texts have been juxtaposed and compared with each other. Whereas earlier scholarship was keen on identifying direct links and dependencies or, alternatively, underlining dissimilarities between the Scrolls’ Judaean priestly movement and the Galilean non-elite Jesus movement and its diaspora follow-up, this thematic volume represents more nuanced attempts to contextualise the similarities and differences in appropriate ways and find new ways of thinking that illuminate both textual corpora.

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